


Church and State

by hollyblue2



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hospital, Angst with a Happy Ending, Doctor!Cas, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Tumblr: deancas-sweetheart, nurse!Dean, re-establishing boundaries
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-09
Updated: 2018-02-09
Packaged: 2019-03-16 01:12:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13625415
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hollyblue2/pseuds/hollyblue2
Summary: Dean calls Castielsweetheartwhile at work in front of a patient which goes against their personal relationship rules and despite now being married, they still have to work through it.





	Church and State

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, so this is my contribution to the **DeanCas Sweetheart Challenge** and it was good fun!
> 
> The idea was suggested by @foxymoley, though I changed it up a tad and it was beta'd by the wonderful @galaxystiel ♥♥

Castiel had an emergency call-in, so Dean hadn’t seen him since he was briefly awoken around 3am. He remembered the quick kiss Castiel had carefully planted on his shoulder before rolling out of bed. Dean promptly rolled into Castiel’s warm spot and fell asleep again until his alarm woke him up at a slightly more reasonable time.

Once he got to the hospital, he put Castiel’s lunch in the doctor’s lounge and fired him a quick text. He wasn’t expecting Castiel to reply any time soon as he knew he was busy. Instead Dean collected his charts and made to do his rounds.

“Morning, Mrs. Moseley, how are we this morning? Any pain?” He asked as he swung into the woman’s room.

She smiled sweetly at him, before telling him she was feeling much better than the day before. Dean was glad for that, she’d come in with appendicitis and the surgeons had quickly and efficiently removed the offending organ.

“That’s great to hear, Missouri, I hope today is good for you.” Dean replies cheerfully before heading out to see his next patient. It was a new one, named Lisa Braeden who’d been involved in an RTC. From her chart she seemed mostly unharmed, a few minor cuts and bruises. She was, however, experiencing memory issues after blacking out at the scene. It was a simple job, Dean just had to collect her vitals and ask her a few questions. She had a son too, visiting her in the hospital. If anything, Dean knew he’d be able to reassure him.

When Dean entered the room, his husband was right there. He grinned widely and despite the fact he was talking, walked right up to him and stood as close as possible.

“Hey, sweetheart,” Dean whispered.

Castiel shot him a glare and carries on talking. The woman in the bed seemed aware of the exchange but didn’t comment.

“Dean, if you wouldn’t mind, young Ben needs a few stitches in his head from the accident. There’s a bed free in cubicle two.” The words stung even if they weren’t meant to, he understood that this was how it was meant to be.

“Of course, Dr. Novak,” Dean moved over to Ben and crouched in front of the boy who looked at him with concern.

“Are you going to be brave and come with me so we can patch you up?” After a quick glance at his mother, the boy nodded and jumped off the chair carefully. Dean took his hand and led him out to the treatment area.

“Alright then, mister, are you a Batman or Superman kinda guy?” Dean lifted the boy up onto the bed and began to gather his supplies.

“Batman.”

“That’s a good choice, Ben.” Dean smiled at the boy. “Okay, this is going to sting just a little but you’re gonna be brave like Batman, right?”

“Okay.” Ben said nervously.

Dean managed to stitch up Ben’s head wound after giving him a shot of novocaine to numb the pain and let him sit on the table for a few minutes afterwards to recover before going back to see his mom.

Dean followed him back to explain to Lisa what he’d done and how to care for him once they were both home.

Leaving Ben in the room with his mom, Dean headed back out to the nurses’ desk to pick up his next file. “Hey,” one of the nurses greeted.

Dean looked up to see his friend scanning through a chart with a perplexed expression.

“How’s it hanging, Charlie?”

“I’m okay, seem to have a lot of cases with Dorothy today. I’m hoping that’s a good thing as she hasn’t spoken to me in weeks.”

“In the doghouse? That’s rough.”

“I don’t know. Anyway, your lover boy wanted to meet you in the on-call room. He seemed a bit... tense...”

Dean flushed. He’d seen this happen on Dr. Sexy, it didn’t happen really but just the thought of it made Dean tingle everywhere. However, Cas had been short with him this morning so it was probably about that.

“Yeah, sure...”

“Go...” Charlie turned her nose up jokingly, “Untense yourselves.” She shuddered dramatically but winked at him before shoving him away.

Dean shook his head. “Yes, my queen, I’ll go and find his highness.” He smiled at Charlie before heading off to meet Cas.

Dean had a fifty-fifty chance of getting the right on-call room so he knocked lightly before poking his head into the dimly lit room. There were two bunk beds to one side of the room and a small wash basin behind the door. Cas was sat on one of the comfy couches, old and well used. He looked stern.

“Hey, Cas.” Dean said quietly. “How was that emergency you got called in for this morning?”

“Not great.” Castiel replied simply.  “Dean, we have to talk about something.”

A rush of cold swept through Dean and he swallows nervously not moving to sit down like he’d planned to. “That’s not ominous.” Dean quipped. Fooling himself more than anyone.

“Dean, we talked about keeping our relationship out of work. We _talked_ about it. This morning, that wasn’t okay, Dean.”

Dean stared blankly at Castiel, his white coat was rumpled and his badge was skewed, and his tie was on backwards from dressing quickly that morning.

“Cas...”

“Dean, _please_.”

“What, Cas?” Dean exasperated. “Suddenly don’t matter to you as soon as I walk through the door? I’m not allowed to look at you or say hello or call you sweetheart?”

“That’s not what I meant. Of course you matter to me, Dean.” Castiel stood up, taking a step towards Dean but Dean just stepped back in sync.

“Then explain it to me Cas? Because right now it doesn’t exactly feel like you want me.”

Rationally Dean knew that wasn’t true, but Dean’s brain wasn’t always rational, especially when it came to Cas. It had been hard work for the both of them to begin their relationship and keep it going over the last few years. He knew that their marriage - while still fresh – helped to reaffirm their commitment. Conflicts still happened, they still argued and shared worries and doubts and yet they still seemed to love each other tirelessly.

They’d decided on keeping their home and work lives separate. Not everyone was accepting and they didn’t want that interfering with their job. Dean had rebutted it almost instantly the first time they discussed it. It had taken him years to show himself as himself, he wasn’t about to crawl back into hiding. Castiel had taught him to be proud of who he as and know he was being asked to shy away from it. He had told Cas that anyone who didn’t agree could _go fuck themselves_ and that had ended the first argument. They finally worked it out months later, trying and testing with each other.

“I don’t want you to get hurt. Not everyone is accepting.”

“I know that.”

“What if that woman hadn’t been accepting, she wouldn’t have let you treat her son and then you’d have a complaint against you.”

“So what?”

“So what?” Castiel growled and shoved his hands into his pockets. “So I don’t want to see you be taken up to HR with a complaint against your name. I don’t want some asshole taking it out on you. That’s not fair on you, Dean.”

“Ain’t exactly fair on you either,” Dean retorted with a huff. “I don’t care. I don’t _want_ to care.” Dean finalised. He straightened his scrub top and left.

When he got back to the nurse’s station Tessa gave him several files and he busied the rest of his shift with them, a whole less cheerier than when he started the day.

*****

Dean got home later than he intended. At first, he just didn’t want to go home and found excuses to stay at work and then he’d ended up in the rush hour traffic. He had several messages from Cas when he checked his phone after pulling the Impala onto their driveway. Instead of answering, Dean collected his rucksack and headed inside.

Castiel was sat on the couch with a cup of coffee in his hand when Dean drops his keys in the bowl beside the door. “Hey, I’m home.” He announced as he hung in the doorway to the front room.

“You’re later than I expected.”

Dean stalled for a moment. He should tell Cas that the argument at work had affected him more than was probably intended and that he’d deliberately found an excuse to stay late, but he wasn’t ready for the impending conversation and lied instead. “I got caught in the traffic.”

“I’m glad you’re home,” Castiel stood, placing his coffee cup on the side table. “I was beginning to worry.”

“I’m okay,” Dean pulled his husband into his arms. “I’m sorry, about today.” He said, even if he didn’t really want to have the conversation, he should at least apologise.

Castiel’s arms wrapped around Dean’s middle and squeezed hard for a moment before he looked up and met Dean’s eyes. “I overreacted, I shouldn’t have said those things.”

“I love you, Cas,” Dean said and pressed a kiss to Castiel’s forehead and smiling at him softly.

“I love you, too, Dean,” Dean’s stomach rumbled loudly and Castiel chuckled. “Dinner?”

“Yeah, I’m starving.”

*****

After a quiet dinner and chilling out on the couch with each other, it was time for them both to sleep. Castiel had already pulled his pyjamas on by the time he got out the shower and Dean got dressed silently. He hesitated a moment, just looking at Cas, already buried under the covers before slipping in behind him, both warm from their showers. He shuffled up close, resting his arm over Castiel’s side.

“Hey, sweetheart,” Dean whispers in Castiel’s ear. The covers rustle as Castiel turned over to face Dean.

“Hello,” he replied and kissed Dean’s nose. Dean glared at him playfully before grinning and hauling himself on top of Cas. “Dean!” Castiel yelped with a laugh.

“Yes?” Dean teases. Dipping down and peppering kisses everywhere he could reach.

“Dean! I was up at 3am, I need to sleep.” Castiel whined.

Dean sighed dramatically, dropping down on top of Castiel with a huff. Castiel let out a grunt but let his fingers card through Dean’s freshly washed hair. “Let’s sleep then.”

“You’re not going to get off me?” Castiel wondered, pausing his hands.

“Nope.”

“I wonder about you sometimes.”

“I wonder about you _all_ the time.” Dean replied with a smile watching as Castiel cocked his head to one side and looking at Dean with a soft expression. Dean pushed himself back up, straddling Castiel’s stomach and sighed, his thoughts much more rational than they had been earlier when he was still at work. “I don’t disrespect the decision we made to keep out work and home lives separate.”

Castiel bent his knees up and allowed Dean to shift so he had most his weight on his knees. Dean reached forward and took Castiel’s chin in his fingers and stroked a thumb over his husband’s cheek.

“I know,” Castiel’s hand wrapped gently around Dean’s wrist. “I know… I just can’t bear to watch you get hurt, Dean.”

“I’ll be fine,”

“You got so much shit in high school, that _kid_ broke your arm, remember. Now, if someone complained or if someone just _decided_ that they didn’t like you with me, I don’t want to imagine that. You could lose your job and you’ve worked too hard for that,”

“I know,” Dean looked down at Castiel’s chest and thumbed at the material distractedly. “I get that, I wouldn’t like that either, you went through your own shit too. I just… I don’t wanna hide,”

“I’m not saying you have to hide who you are Dean,” Castiel insisted quietly. “Just, please don’t get hurt for who you are.”

Dean nodded gently, brushing his thumb over Castiel’s lips. “Okay, we split them up, home and work.”

Castiel nodded once. “This doesn’t mean you can’t see me at work or say hello or anything like that, just, no pet names or flirting.”

“I don’t flirt with you.”

Castiel raised a brow with a challenge and Dean thought for a moment, okay, so maybe he liked to flirt with Castiel a lot at work.

“And if we’re alone?”

Castiel shrugged his shoulders, “We decide if it’s appropriate.”

“Okay.”

“Okay.”

“Hey, Cas?” Dean traced his finger seductively down Castiel’s sleep shirt.

“Yes, Dean?” Castiel replied with amusement.

“Can we?” Dean wondered, smiling and leaning down to kiss Castiel.

“Were you up at 3am?” Castiel asked with a perfectly timed yawn.

“Technically, you woke me up when you got out of bed.”

“Deeaan, I need to sleep…. Tomorrow, I promise.”

“Alright,” Dean rolled off Castiel to snuggle up behind him, wrapping an arm around his husband and letting Castiel hold him close to his body. It would be unlikely that they’d ever both be satisfied with the arrangement, but it kept them both safe in the long run and to each other, that’s what mattered most. Dean mumbled an “I love you,” in Castiel’s ear before taking a deep breath and taking in everything that was his husband, every molecule of their love for each other. To real world people, Dean didn’t _snuggle_ , but behind closed doors, in their own privacy, it’s exactly what he did.

 

**Author's Note:**

> The title _Church and State_ comes from Miranda and Ben's relationship in Grey's anatomy where they call the similar situation Church and State to split their home life and work life.


End file.
